This weekend’s soccer on TV

The last time Real Madrid and Barcelona faced off in Spain's biggest rivalry, Real Madrid came into the match as newly-minted champions while Barcelona was a team in shambles, a club on the verge of a major shake-up.

What a difference seven months can make.

The roles have reversed for the Spanish powers, with Barcelona running away with the league and looking unbeatable while Real Madrid is the one coming off a recent coaching change and dealing with a tidal wave of injuries. Saturday's match has all the makings of a blowout and you can rest assured Barcelona will be looking for some sweet revenge after the way Real Madrid tore Barca to shreds last May.

Even with that backdrop, Barca-Real Madrid is still the most highly-anticipated game of the weekend, but there is certainly competition. The biggest threat to that title goes to AC Milan-Juventus, which is probably a better game because both teams are closer to being on form.

If you're looking for some more information and insight into the weekend's best games, then check out SBI's Top 10 matches to watch along with the full soccer on TV schedule. Enjoy:

Top 10 matches to watch

1. Real Madrid at Barcelona. As much as this has all the makings of a blowout there is still definitely a can't-miss feel to it, like we are either going to see a Barca blowout or one of the best matches of the year.

2. AC Milan at Juventus. Both teams want this one badly to stay within striking distance of Serie A leaders Inter Milan. Juventus little man Sebastian Giovinco is playing big and is among the ones to watch in this one.

3. Villarreal at Sevilla. Barcelona loss aside, Sevilla has been in better form than the Yellow Submarine in recent weeks, but Villarreal offense keeps it in any game. Will we see Jozy Altidore get another start? And if he keeps playing, will it go a long way toward softening the hatred for Giuseppe Rossi among American fans?

4. Marseille at Lyon. Marseille has been underachieving all year and Lyon is enduring its worst run of form all season. So why is this ranked so high? There will still be too much talent on display and we should see some good attacking soccer to make this a fun one to watch.

5. Manchester United at Tottenham. The champs' last match before heading to Japan is an important one because they can't afford any more slip-ups while Liverpool is still racking up points.

6. NCAA College Cup Final. If favorites Wake Forest reach the final, we should be treated to a great match, whether its against Maryland or St. John's. If it's Maryland, you could see half the players who will be first-rounders in the 2009 MLS Draft on display.

7. Schalke 04 at TSG Hoffenheim. Note to self: Don't miss any more Hoffenheim games because they are arguably the second-most fun team to watch play these days (Barcelona being the most fun to watch.)

8. Colon at Boca Juniors. Boca is in a three-way tie for first place in Argentina and needs a win here to either lift the title or force a playoff. You can bet Colon won't make it easy.

9.Bayern Munich at VFB Stuttgart. Bayern is rolling and playing great soccer these days and a win could move them past Hoffenhim. Stuttgart is in the middle of the pack and needs this upset to try and climb into the pack competing for European spot

10. Digicel Caribbean Cup Final (Jamaica vs. Grenada). Could be worth a look to check out some of the players MLS scouts are eyeing ahead of 2009.

This wekeend's soccer on TV

FRIDAY

5:30pm- ESPN2- NCAA Final Four- Wake Forest vs. North Carolina.

8pm- ESPNU- NCAA Final Four- Maryland vs. St. John's

11:30pm- FSC- Al Ahly vs. Pachuca (FIFA Club World Cup)

SATURDAY

7:40am- Setanta USA- Arsenal at Middlesbrough

10am- FSC- Everton at Manchester City

10am- Setanta USA- Hull City at Liverpool

11:30am- GolTV- Bayern Munich at VFB Stuttgart

12:15pm- Setanta USA- Birmingham at Preston North End

12:30pm- FSC- Manchester United at Tottenham

2pm- GolTV- Espanyol at Valencia

2:30pm- FSC- Lecce at Napoli

2:55pm- Setanta USA- Nantes at Rennes

4pm- GolTV- Real Madrid at Barcelona

4:30pm- FSC- Torino at Bologna

5pm- Setanta USA- Bolton at Aston Villa

6:45pm-Setanta USA- Fulham at Stoke City

8:30pm- FSC- Blackburn at Wigan

8:30pm- Setanta USA- Hull City at Liverpool

1am- FSC- Sydney FC at Central Coast Mariners

SUNDAY

5:30am- FSC- Gamba Osaka vs. Adelaide United (FIFA Club World Cup)

8:25am- Setanta USA- Newcastle United at Portsmouth

9am- FSC- Chievo vs. Inter Milan

11am- FSC- West Ham at Chelsea

11am- GolTV- Schalke 04 at TSG Hoffenheim

1pm- GolTV- Villarreal at Sevilla

1pm- ESPN2- NCAA College Cup Final

2pm- Fox Sports Espanol- Colon at Boca Juniors

2:30pm- FSC- AC Milan at Juventus

2:55pm- Setanta USA- Marseille at Lyon

3pm- GolTV- Real Betis at Atletico Madrid

5:30pm- GolTV- Deportivo Pereira at America

6pm- FSC- Digicel Caribbean Cup Championship (Jamaica vs. Grenada).

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What matches will you be watching this weekend? What match-ups are you most looking forward to?

Do American fans really hate Rossi? I can understand why there would be disappointment, but hatred is more than a little strong, no? He had the perfectly legitimate opportunity to play for Italy, a side far more likely to win the World Cup than the U.S. (as much as I’d like to eat those words), a side that plays in the Euros, the second-most pretigious tournament (unlike the U.S.), and a side that, frankly, if he does well, can earn him more money over his career.

Rossi is Exhibit A that a kid from New Jersey can become a world class footballer (whether Jozy is Exhibit B remains to be seen). That’s a step in the right direction for U.S. soccer, even if Rossi doesn’t play for or in the U.S. As the recent election showed, the realization that something that hasn’t happened is possible and can happen goes a long way to putting old biases away. If Rossi forces Europeans to look at American-raised footballers differently, then his success gives us a lot to cheer about and we should wish him well, at least when he isn’t playing us. After all, did you ever think that a couple of Jersey kids would be featuring in the attack of a solid La Liga side?

Fulham really need to win against Stoke and put some distance between them and the bottom. 3 straight draws against ‘Pool, Villa, and Man City sounds good and all, but you’d have just as many points winning one and losing the others.

And with a whopping 8 hour delay from game time (10am) to broadcast time, no complaining about spoiling this one in the comments!

thanks Ives, do you know what channel the Digicel Cup would be on? I plan on watching most of the FSC games this weekend. Also Ives I don’t think I’d ever not-hate Rossi (unless he came to RBNY of course =), which isn’t going to happen, so I guess I’ll always hate him)